Tuesday, December 08, 2009

After lunching twice at Bocado, once with a friend and another time in celebration of a birthday, I recommend this West Midtown newcomer. I really like the space, which is very open, with clean lines and a neat bar. Outside you'll recognize the place from the bamboo surrounding the building.

On my first visit a friend and I started with the wonderful tomato bisque and tried the deliciously simple young lettuce salad with cranberries and goat cheese. Then we split two sandwiches - the roasted cauliflower - which I adore and the pimento cheese fried green tomato sandwich without the bacon (my dining companion that day being vegetarian). Even without the bacon this is a rich, delicious sandwich. For dessert we tried the often mentioned chocolate pudding (photo below). The term "chocolate pudding" doesn't do enough to describe it in my book - just try it!

Rich tomato bisque with parmesan frico and young lettuce salad with cranberries and goat cheese.

On my second visit I dined with my work family for our paralegal's birthday. Everyone enjoyed the experience and had a fun celebratory lunch. We tried two more of the sides/salads (above) & I was disappointed with their small size for the price and lack of big flavor - especially the apple salad. In fact, I think the price point here is a bit high in general. It would be really nice if the sandwiches came with fries or another side dish, but I like the food enough to come back again soon anyhow - still, I would come back more if it was a little more budget-friendly! West Midtown is really flourishing, so if you haven't been you should check out Bocado and some of the other recently opened establishments.

Portabello goat cheese panini. Very tasty - I stole a bite!

Bocado version of banh mi - Vietnamese pork sandwich. Pretty good but not worth the high price - you can get a great one on Buford Highway for $2.50 from Lee's Bakery!

Roasted turkey breast and ham sandwich with gruyere and arugula.

The famous burger. The two people who ordered it did not share. I take that to mean it was really good!

Yours truly with executive chef Todd Ginsberg. The chef as well as owner Brian Lewis were both extremely hospitable and personable on both my visits. I like when a chef isn't scared to come out of the kitchen!

The chocolate pudding - a must-try.

Lemon dessert with homemade nougat - also very tasty but not as conducive to sharing.